Indonesia series: social cohesion

In the second in our series on Indonesia we discuss how social cohesion works in this vast nation and what the potential flashpoints might be.

One the one hand, the country is characterised by its diversity, pluralism and tolerance; and on the other we get a strong sense that there are pockets of Indonesia that are increasingly drawn to Islamic radicalism.

Human Rights Watch recently issued a report indicating an increase in religiously motivated violence. There is also a new draft criminal code that seems to indicate a hardening of some laws in accordance with conservative Islamic doctrine.